A Proposal
Chapter 2
by TheAngryTaco

A/N: I return with a vengeance.

I want to give a big shout out and thank you to all of my readers and reviewers. I'm going to keep writing this anyway, but your kind words and encouragement give me even more motivation. Please, continue to enjoy.

Mandatory disclaimer: I don't own Keroro Gunso - that's a silly thought. I also borrowed Ponono from Mister Don Johnny Cadet Sir.


After a while, Pururu made herself get up. She sent the pillow to be cleaned, then pulled out every single needle that she had. She got to work, polishing each one furiously until they all gleamed. Then she carefully arranged them by size, meticulously comparing each one until they were all in order. Once they were back in their proper places, she began sorting bandages, organizing the medicine cabinets, and scrubbing every surface she could reach.

Finally, the medical bay was the very definition of clean. Pururu searched around for another task to keep her mind off of the situation, but there was nothing left to do. Sighing, she sat back down on her stool and picked the folder back up. Her eyes wandered over the profile, reading information she'd already known for years, hoping something would give her an easy answer. After several minutes, she finally gave up and put the folder aside, her face pink. "What am I going to do?" she asked aloud, burying her face in her arms.

She tried to think of who she could possibly go to for advice. "I can't go to anyone in this platoon, that's for sure," she muttered. "Definitely not my parents...Keroro and his platoon have questionable logic at best, so I can't ask them..."

She let her head fall against the counter. Then it hit her. "Of course!" she gasped. "I'm an idiot!"

After carefully checking to make sure the hall was clear, Pururu quickly made her way to the communication deck. She locked the door behind her and scurried over to the phone. Crossing her fingers, she punched in the numbers and waited anxiously.

It rang twice before she heard a click on the other end. "Hello?" said a female voice.

"Miss Ponono?" Pururu asked.

There was a pause. "Pururu?" the other Keronian asked, surprised. "How nice to hear from you! How have you been?"

"Well enough, thank you," the medic replied nervously. "And yourself?"

"Oh, doing all right myself," the older frog answered. "Now, what can I do for you?"

"I...well, I need your advice," Pururu explained.

"Oh?" Ponono responded, her tone growing more serious. "What's wrong?"

She listened without comment as Pururu told her about the arranged marriage offer and her inability to decide what to do about it. "Forgive me, Pururu, but I don't understand the difficulty. Do you want to marry him or not?" Ponono asked when she had finished.

Pururu put her face in her hands. "I really don't know," she said. "It's...complicated."

"...Ah," Ponono commented as a lightbulb went off in her head. "You're worried about romance...or lack thereof, if Garuru hasn't changed since I last saw him."

The younger Keronian blushed heavily and groaned.

"Well, if that's the case," Ponono went on. "You have to ask yourself one question: Will you be happy in, say, twenty years if you marry him?"

Pururu considered the question. "It's hard to say," she replied. "I think I probably would...Garuru's difficult to figure out, but he's a good leader and he's always treated me well."

"Well, whatever your decision, I'll be happy for you," Ponono promised. "Though may I ask one thing?"

"Certainly."

"If you do decide to go through with it, I hope you'll invite me to the ceremony?"

Pururu smiled. "There's no way I'd have it without you," she assured Ponono. "You're more like my mother than my actual mother."

Ponono sighed. "I wish I could tell you to think otherwise, but knowing Biriri..." she paused. "Well, no sense in dwelling on it. Best of luck to you, Pururu."

"Thank you, Ponono. I'll try to call you again soon and let you know," Pururu said, feeling better as she hung up. Glancing at the clock, she saw that she had a fair amount of time before dinner, so she returned to the medical bay to study Pentonia and figure out what vaccines she would need to give out.

By the time she left for dinner, she was at full confidence again. Pururu merrily skipped out of the deck and down the hall to the kitchen. She smelled an oddly sweet scent mixed with something burning. Then she remembered that it was Taruru's turn to cook. She braced herself before entering the kitchen, nearly coughing up a lung as a cloud of smoke hit her in the face.

It was utter chaos. Stacks of dishes, covered in various substances of every color imaginable, were stacked high on the counters and in the sink. Both ovens were covered in something yellow and pink with smoke making its way through the cracks in the doors. Another counter was completely stained with pink and purple as Taruru attempted to mix something. "Taruru?" Pururu asked weakly. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, hey!" Taruru said cheerfully. "I'm baking a cake!"

"Cake for dinner? That's not very..."

He waved his hand dismissively. "I know it's not what you're supposed to do," he replied. "But one should never resist the call of cake! And the cake called to me tonight."

"If you say so," she replied, not sure how else to respond..

Behind her, she could hear the rest of the platoon come in then stop short. "Pu pu, what happened in here?" Tororo asked. "Did a Lorenell get on our ship again?"

"No," Pururu answered. "Taruru was making...dinner."

"Oh."

Garuru walked past her and studied the stack of dirty dishes. He looked back at Taruru, who had coated himself in icing while trying to decorate the cake. "I expect you to clean this all up yourself, Private," the lieutenant said sternly.

"I will, don't you worry!" Taruru replied, saluting his leader quickly. "Now, go sit while I finish it."

The purple Keronian stood still for a moment, considering whether or not to remark on the younger frog giving him an order. Then he walked over to the table and sat down. The rest of the platoon copied him with various looks of annoyance on their faces. "I vote that next time, we just don't tell him it's his turn," Zoruru grumbled.

Pururu gave him a withering look, after which he fell silent. Taruru didn't seem to notice as he placed a gigantic piece of cake in front of her. She stared at it in shock. "Taruru, this is way too big," she remarked.

"But it's a special day!" he protested, serving a similar piece to Garuru. "We need to celebrate!"

Tororo glared at him as he was served a smaller piece. "What exactly are we celebrating, pu pu?" he asked.

Taruru stayed silent until he and Zoruru both had their pieces. Then he looked eagerly from Pururu and Garuru. Her nerves promptly returned. "Why are you smiling like that?"

"Don't you have some exciting news?"

Pururu's pupils shrank in shock as Garuru frowned at the blue Keronian. "I wasn't aware that we had any news to share, good or bad," he replied.

Taruru smacked his forehead impatiently. "How is your engagement not big news?" he demanded.

Pururu promptly choked on her cake as Tororo and Zoruru forgot their dinner entirely. "Are you serious?" Tororo asked, grinning evilly.

"Completely!"

Zoruru's eye narrowed sharply. "This has to be a joke," he commented. "A very poorly thought out one at that."

Taruru shook his head, grinning, though his smile faded as Garuru fixed him with a hard stare. "And where did you acquire this information?" the lieutenant inquired calmly.

"I heard Pururu talking to someone about it earlier," Taruru explained. "And when I heard...I was just so happy for you guys!"

Garuru gave Pururu a questioning glance. She shook her head frantically.

"Well, you are mistaken, Private," Garuru replied. "We have not made a decision yet."

Zoruru nearly fell out of his chair. "You mean he's serious?" he choked.

"Chief Medic and I only received the offers a few hours ago," Garuru replied. "We haven't had the chance to discuss it in detail yet."

Tororo actually did fall out of his chair as he started laughing uncontrollably. Taruru looked down, his smile gone. "Oh, I'm sorry," he apologized, rubbing the back of his head. "I didn't mean..."

Pururu stared down at her plate as her appetite vanished. She pushed the plate away, then stood and began to walk toward the door. "I'm not hungry," she muttered, slipping out before anyone could call her back.

As soon as she got to her room, she slammed the door behind her and locked it. Then she collapsed on her bed. She hit her head against her pillow several times, muttering quietly to herself. There was a gentle knock on her door. She lifted her head wearily. "I'm not here at the moment," she called. "Please leave a message at the beep."

"Chief Medic, may I come in, please?"

Pururu cursed herself, but forced herself to her feet and did as she was asked. As soon as the door was open, Garuru walked in. She nervously closed the door behind him, then pulled up two chairs. The two sat in silence for a moment. Then he spoke. "I apologize that I did not intervene with Taruru. I know that's not how either of us wanted them to find out."

She shook her head. "It's not your fault, Lieutenant," she said quietly. "It's mine...I should have kept my voice down."

He looked at her curiously. "Who were you speaking to about this?"

"Oh, just...someone from Keron," Pururu answered. "I needed some help getting my thoughts in order."

"I see," he replied. "Have you come to decision?"

She took a deep breath. "I have...my answer is yes," she replied. "What about you?"

"My answer is also yes."

She blinked several times, not sure she had heard correctly. "Did you just say yes?" she asked, stunned.

He nodded. "I was quite surprised to receive any offer at all, let alone one for you. But after carefully considering the matter, it's a very logical match. We're very skilled in our fields with high ranks, we have the fortune of already knowing each other, and although I do not presume to speak for you, I hold you in the highest regard."

Pururu's heart skipped hopefully. "Is that so?" she inquired, trying to sound as casual as possible.

"Yes. You're completely devoted to this platoon and to your duties. You're a loyal spirit and a team player. You very rarely make any kind of mistake, and when you do, you acknowledge it and take steps to ensure it won't happen again. You're a worthy soldier, and I'm honored to have you serving with us."

Her heart sank with every word. She knew that this was extremely high praise and that she should be pleased by it, but the only emotion she felt was sadness. "Thank you very much, Lieutenant," she replied. "I only hope that I continue to be worthy of such praise."

Garuru noticed her shift in demeanour. "I know that you said you are not ill, but you still seem unwell," he remarked, standing up. "We can send our answers to Headquarters in the morning. In the meantime, try to get some rest."

"I will," she promised as she walked him to her door. "Good night, Lieutenant."

"Good night, Chief Medic."


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